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The future of European Justice
Citizens and enterprises need that European Justice gives them quick, simple and more efficient answers. Today, in order to do that, E-Justice is of vital importance.
The Portuguese Presidency will give a new impulse to the ongoing work in the domain of electronic justice.
With the increase in the use of new technologies, it is possible to obtain and exchange data and work in the domain of penal and civil justice. It will be a priority of the Portuguese Presidency to promote this evolution, aiming at the dematerialization and simplification of solutions, so that citizens and enterprises become direct beneficiaries.
The future of European Justice also demands institutional answers. Both in the Court of Justice and at a national level, it is necessary to have better conditions to assure, in due time, the answers of community law.
A European Justice capable of solving the problems of its citizens and enterprises.
The making and execution of contracts, family life and business activity go beyond, ever more, the limits of juridical and territorial boundaries of a single State. That means, in the area of Justice and particularly private justice, that there is a greater demand for previsibility and effectiveness, to the benefit of the people, consumers and enterprises. These challenges can only be met with a more effective contribution from the European Union.
The Portuguese Presidency will invest in the works in the area of determining which law is applicable to international contracts, food responsabilities and other areas of private law. Previsibility, effectiveness and simplicity should be the guiding values.
Friendly solutions in the area of solving conflicts are valuable alternatives and an important means in the access to justice. The Portuguese Presidency considers very important the works in the area of civil and commercial mediation, and aims at their formulation on a European scale.
A European justice capable of fighting crime in a more efficient way, placing judicial systems and the police in permanent cooperation.
The Portuguese Presidency will continue with the ongoing works so that cooperation between the judicial system and the police in the European Union will be more effective, especially in the fight against organised crime and terrorism, assuring the protection of fundamental rights. This protection is of the utmost importance in regard to the protection of personal data, now that their use across the borders will be extended to other types of data such as DNA profiles and fingerprints, where the effectiveness of this protection is fundamental.
Planned evolutions in Europol and Eurojust should bring added value to their contributions in the investigation and judgement of crimes and should thus mean good news, especially for the citizens.
In order to be effective, penal justice also needs to act in the areas of crime prevention and relapse, which means new measures of mutual acknowledgment of decisions, encompassing suspended penalties or penalties that don't require detention in all the territory of the European Union.
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